Plus-size prejudice claimed in Lane Bryant lingerie ad ban

What makes one lady in a lacy bra racier than another lady in a lacy bra? Well, according to ABC, weight. The plus-size clothing retailer Lane Bryant and ABC network have been in a dust-up over a disputed lingerie ad the clothier wanted to air with the broadcaster.

Lane Bryant claims that ABC and Fox initially rejected their ad, while it lets similarly scantily-clad ads for Victoria’s Secret run regularly. Fox eventually relented and will air the ad during this week’s America Idol. ABC, meanwhile, restricted the ad to daytime soaps and post primetime. So what could be so scandalous to require such restrictions? See for yourself.

Go ahead, watch it a couple time for – um, you know – research. Now the ad is sexy, but in no way more salacious than your average Victoria’s Secret commercial which I’ve seen during the so-called “family hour.” In fact, I’d say it’s considerably tamer than most of the other lingerie commercials I’ve seen in primetime. Take the much ballyhooed Michael Bay Victoria’s Secret ad released for Christmas.

Lane Bryant has crusaded against what it considers Fox and ABC’s unfair treatment on its official blog, saying:

Yes (ABC and Fox) are the same networks that have scantily-clad housewives so desperate they seduce every man on the block, and don’t forget Bart Simpson, who has shown us the moon more often than NASA, all during what they call “prime time.”

While it’s no secret that Victoria’s Secret “The Nakeds” ads are prancing around on major networks leaving little to the imagination, steaming up TV screens and baring nearly everything but their souls, our sultry siren who shows sophisticated sass is somehow deemed inappropriate. The network exclaimed, she has “too much cleavage” Gasp!

Both Fox and ABC have refuted lane Bryant’s claims, saying requesting reedits and restricting timeslots is common practice for commercial approval. ABC, in particular said Lane Bryant was simply seeking publicity. The retailer retorted the broadcaster by denial by releasing documents from ABC about the ad and their restrictions. Take a look at the documents posted at Jezebel.com.

Now, Lane Bryant could be milking this brouhaha (or should we say brahaha) for all it’s worth. But there does seem to be an underlying double standard about what is sexy and what is too sleazy. Simply having a larger cup size shouldn’t automatically make a model suddenly unacceptable. As the lovely Lane Bryant model herself, Ashley Graham, told the NY Post:

“The first thing I thought of was Victoria’s Secret commercials, and how they’re just as racy, if not more racy, than Lane Bryant. [The models are] just a lot smaller than what I am … [ABC] can’t handle bigger on TV, bigger boobs on a normal-sized woman on TV.”

Amen to that, honey. Now I’m going to go watch her ad again a couple dozen times. What can I say, I’m a thorough very researcher. So what do you think? Is ABC being prejudice against big, beautiful gals?